Trolley-wire support



M. HOOPBS' & of s. HERTZOG.

(No Mode 1.

TROLLEY WIRE SUPPORT.

Patented 0011 3, 1893.

INVENTORS.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAURICE HOOPES AND OSCAR S. HERTZOG, OF LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS.

TROLLEY-WIRE SUPPORT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 506,043, dated October 3, 1893.

Application filed July 1. 1893. Serial No. 479,337. (No model.)

vented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Railways, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Our invention relates to electric railways, the ob ect being to provide means for flexibly suspending a trolley wire to a mast arm or bracket. Heretofore it has been customary when the trolley wire is supported upon brackets or mast arms, to attach the insulator and clip positively and rigidly to the end of the arm, and it has been noticed that when the trolley passes under one of these rigid supports a blow is struck upon the roof of the car. When the car is between the supports the loose wire yields slightly to the pressure of the trolley, but when the trolley strikes the cl 1p at the end of the mast arm, there is no yielding, and the result is a concussion which is transmitted through the trolley arm to the roof of the car. This is unpleasant to the passengers and injurious to the trolley and car. In systems where the trolley wire is suspended upon span wires attached to poles arranged on opposite sides of the street, this defect does not occur, because the span wires furnish flexible supports for the trolley wire.

Our invention comprehends a support for the wire when supported upon bracket arms, which is similar in its action to the support furnished by a span wire.

Our invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which-- Figure 1 represents a side elevation of a post and bracket arm equipped with our invent1on; and Fig. 2 is a plan of the support.

Referring to the drawings by letter, Arepresents a post which may be of any of the usual constructions, either wood or metal. Near its upper end it is provided with a bracket arm at extending in a horizontal position and supported by a suitable brace or braces a. The outer end of the arm is made hollow, or the entire arm may be a pipe, and in this hollow end is placed one arm of a bent rod b into which it is adjustable to any depth. This rod is bent substantially to a right angle sential.

and the outer end projects downward. At the extremity of the outer end an ordinary clevis b is pivoted and to this is attached a wire I) which connects with an eye bolt 6 passing through the post in a direction substantially parallel to the main bracket arm. To the end of the eye bolt a nut is fitted by which it may be drawn out to put any degree of tension upon the wire I) desired. The right angle rod 1) may be secured in the hollow end of the bracket arm at any desired point by means of the set screw b 0 represents an ordinary insulator carrying a clip 0 to which the trolley wire dis secured in the ordinary'manner. This insulator is attached to the wire 6 by a short length of binding wire I), or in any other ordinary way.

It will now be observed that when the trolley passes along in contact with the trolley wire, the flexibility of the wire 19 and the pivotal arrangement at the clevis will permit the insulator to move upward slightly under the pressure of the trolley and thus allow the latter to pass without imparting a blow or shock to the roof of the car.

Wherever convenient, the bracket arm may be made longer than usual and the clevis disposed of, the wire being attached directly to the end of the bent rod, but the clevis is desirable under all conditions, although not es- The insulator may be located at any point along the wire I) but the clevis will permit it to be located near the outer end of the wire, thus rendering it possible to use the shortest bracket arm. If the arm is supported by a single brace a',the brace should be provided with an eye a through which the wire I) may pass, or it may be desirable to use two bracing arms and pass the wire between them. Our invention is obviously not limited to such details of construction. It is also pointed out that the bent rod 1) may be formed integrally with the bracket arm or may be bolted rigidly to it; the adjustment of the tension of the suspension wire will then be accomplished solely by'the bolt b In the claims which follow, the suspension wire carrying the insulator is mentioned as being stretched between the outer and inner ends of the bracket arm. This. does not necessarily limit the invention to direct con nection with the bracket arm itself nor to ICO the very extreme ends of it, but is to be understood as including any construction in which the suspension wire is stretched along under the bracket arm, either throughout the entire or a portion of its length, and the term connected to the ends of the bracket arm, means connected adjacentto as well as directly to thearms, for it is shown and described as being connected directly at one end to the end of the bracket arm and at the other to the post, but it will be observed that the latter end is adjacent to one end of the arm.

It may be well to point out another advantage of this invention not hereinbet'ore mentioned. The blow which is imparted to the trolley arm and to the roof of the car, is also felt by the insulator or support for the wire. When the support is rigidly mounted on the end of a bracket arm, the repeated blows of the trolley wheels results in theloosening of the fastening devices of the wire, the breaking of the insulator itself, or other injury to the support. This cannot take place when the support yields to the upward thrust of the trolley. This advantage is quite as important as the protection to the car and trolley arm.

Having thus described our invention, we claim 1. The combination with a mast or bracket arm for supporting trolley wires, a suspension wire stretched between the outer and inner ends of the bracket arm, and a trolley wire insulator or support attached to said suspension wire.

2. The combination with a mast orbracket arm, of a suspension wire stretched between the inner and outer ends thereof, said wire being pivotally connected at one end, and an insulator or support for the trolley wire attached to said suspension wire, for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination of the bracket arm, the clevis pivoted to one end, a suspension wire attached to the clevis and also attached to the opposite end of the bracket arm, and a trolley wire support or insulator secured to the suspension wire.

4. The combination of the bracket arm and its supporting post, an adjustable bent rod secured to the end of the arm, a suspension wire secured to said bent rod and to the post, and an insulator or trolley wire support attached to said suspension wire.

5. The combination with a mastorbracket arm for supporting trolley wires, a suspension wire stretched between the outer and inner ends of the bracket arm, a trolley wire insulator or support attached to said suspension wire, and means for adjusting the tension of the suspension wire.

In testimony whereof we subscribe our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

MAURICE HOOPES. OSCAR S. HERTZOG.

WVitnesses:

ARTHUR S. PALFRAY, ARTHUR B. PORTER. 

